opinion on ford, chevy, or dodge for CC Silverback 35QB4

[Margaret Shope]

This is our second year owning a fifth wheel. My dream camper. It's great on room for the kids and grandchild. However we feel that it may be putting a strain on our 1997 F250 power stroke. And we have been shopping around for another truck......WOW. Have prices gone up on trucks since 1997. We have been checking out what other people tow their fifth wheels with and we've been looking at brochures. But I told my husband why don't we see what others have to say about their experiences with trucks. He's a Ford guy. I like Chevys. But we've been impressed with the Dodges, yet never thought about a dodge until now. Please give us some feedback.

[rattleNsmoke]

Take a look around the campgrounds. That will give you a perty good idea what most campers put their hard earned $$ into.

[wyo700]

You are gonna get answers from all three owners saying there's is the best. So I am a Toyota owner and if I was to buy a diesel it would be the ram with a cummins. I worked in a fleet garage and had all the big three diesels. We had less problems with the cummins than the ford and Chevy. But we also had the 6.0 ford and the 6.4. And when it came to the Chevy it wasn't really the dmax that we had issues with but the trans and the transfer cases and front diff. That is if you were to get a 4x4. Actually we had so many problems with the GM's that I would never buy a GM product ever.

[ependydad]

I'm going to tell you Ram because for us it had the most comfortable interior and back seat. We wanted to be able to seat 6 and wanted to be comfortable when doing it. We found that in the Ram Crew Cab. The Chevy felt small in the back seat. The Ford felt similarly sized to the Ram, but still smaller. What's really strange- if you look at the actual specs online, they're all within an inch or two of each other. But, the feeling doesn't reflect the measurements.

BUT- that's what was important to us. Not necessarily what is important to you...

[CBergstrom]

We have a Sabre 34tbok which is similar in size to yours and pull it with a 2012 Ram Cummins 3500 4x4 crew SRW. This is my first Dodge truck after being a GM guy my entire life. It pulls the trailer very well and I love the torque this engine has. There is lots of debate which is better to have in a diesel, torque or horsepower. I'm glad I chose the torque. When I was truck shopping, Dodge had a free diesel option so that combined with dealer discounts, I saved over $15k vs. Duramax. In my opinion GM hasn't kept pace with Dodge and Ford with the interior and is one of the reasons I went looking elsewhere. Dodge has also come a long way in the ride department in the past few years too. It will be interesting see how the 2014 GMs look and feel on the inside as they didn't change much on the exterior.

Whichever truck you choose, I would go with a 1-ton as it isn't much more money than a 3/4 ton and you will most likely need the payload capacity when loaded up with your trailer and gear. With our combination, we are pretty close to load capacity on the truck but well within the towing capacity. I would also recommend putting airbags to maintain your box level and smooth out the ride

[ependydad]

As well, you didn't ask- but I'd watch truck weights. Your trailer is going to be very similar weight-wise to mine (almost identical floorplans). Here are my most recent weights with what I consider our heaviest load that we can expect (2 weeks of camping, 1 week at a beach house and an extra adult to our normal family of 4):
Sabre 36QBOK Weighing

[Duckogram]

I have a 12 F350 DRW. Just did a 9000 mile two country east coast tour and averaged 12.2 MPG. Also used 5 gal of DEF at $2.69/gal bulk. Your pin weight is similar to mine so you should be looking at one ton's. if you want highway stability you will need DRW. And of course, a long bed. I would not buy an Isuzu. The Dodge Bros are supposed to be pairing the workhorse Cummings with the Allison 6speed in 2014. If that is true, you would have a difficult decision between the two contenders. The trans was always the Dodges weak point IMO. Ford fixed their problem in 2011 when they dumped the International 6.4L guzzler.

[Av8orLou]

Originally Posted by Duckogram

I have a 12 F350 DRW. Just did a 9000 mile two country east coast tour and averaged 12.2 MPG. Also used 5 gal of DEF at $2.69/gal bulk. Your pin weight is similar to mine so you should be looking at one ton's. if you want highway stability you will need DRW. And of course, a long bed. I would not buy an Isuzu. The Dodge Bros are supposed to be pairing the workhorse Cummings with the Allison 6speed in 2014. If that is true, you would have a difficult decision between the two contenders. The trans was always the Dodges weak point IMO. Ford fixed their problem in 2011 when they dumped the International 6.4L guzzler.

I am interested to see if this is true because I don't believe it will happen. It would be like Cummins selling engines to GM, it just wouldn't happen. I am sure GM has some kind of exclusivity contract with allison so they can't sell to another manufacturer just like Ram has with Cummins. I am sure they do it on an individual level though. I am not saying anything with any authority, these are just my thoughts on it. Also, I love my Duramax and my Allison, it is a great combination. The others seem nice, I won't knock them, but I think I will keep it GM.

[Duckogram]

Well then Av8torLou,
Here's a link to Fords mobile website. I was looking at moving up to a MDT last year and found these specs... Ford Truck, Cummings Diesel and Allison Transmission all from the factory.... for a poultry $125k. LOL

http://m.ford.com/smartphone/specs.h...013#appsimHome

[SaskCampers]

Originally Posted by Duckogram

The Dodge Bros are supposed to be pairing the workhorse Cummings with the Allison 6speed in 2014. If that is true, you would have a difficult decision between the two contenders. The trans was always the Dodges weak point IMO. Ford fixed their problem in 2011 when they dumped the International 6.4L guzzler.

I think you are refering to this tranny.

Starting in 2014, Ram 4500 and 5500 chassis cabs carry a standard Aisin AS66RC (also optional on Ram 3500)

[Scratch]

It's a tough decision. Whatever you decide; do yourself a favor and drive all three. We went with the 2012 F-250 because torque (800 lbs) and horsepower (400) were noticeably stronger than the competitors.

Very happy with our decision; however, another consideration is that the F-250 is the most stolen vehicle in America at present, so based on where you live, your insurance rates could be affected. HLDI news release

We already have nearly 58k miles on the truck; all trouble free. We'll probably step up to a one-ton F350 next time around...

Whatever you choose; airbags would be a good investment for a rig that big...

[Duckogram]

Originally Posted by TheSasks

I think you are refering to this tranny.

Starting in 2014, Ram 4500 and 5500 chassis cabs carry a standard Aisin AS66RC (also optional on Ram 3500)

You are correct... My typo and failure to proof read. It is the Aisin (Toyota) 6 speed HD transmission that is available with the Cummings.

[5erDriver]

You are going to get so many 'right' answers with this one for sure. I say go drive the big 3 and see what you think. I don't think there's really a bad choice between them now. They all may have their good and bad traits but I have friends with BIG 5th wheels and between us we have almost every combination of make, model and bed length. 2500's and 350/3500's. No one has any problems pulling for sure. Off course there are trade offs with fuel mileage, options, hitch types(sliders), and the like. Me, I have an '08 350 long bed crew cab with the 6.4. I love it. I looked at them all and this was the truck I liked and could afford. Tows great. Bought used with 74k on it. Yes the newer 6.7 gets better mileage but I simply could not afford go up 2 years newer to get it. I would have bought a Duramax no problem and I don't think you can beat the Cummins motor but I just don't like how the Dodges looked from the model years I could afford at the time(sorry). As I say. You will get a lot of different answers.

[Duckogram]

Cost? Is this not the Cedar Creek section? LOL

[pwrstroke2012]

Everybody always seems to like the brand they have so you have go by your own wants and likes. You can't pry me out of a Ford with a crowbar though. I would get a 1 ton no matter how you go.

[jblackjack]

Ford makes a more comfortable truck, nicer interior better drive and handling. But nothing will out pull a Cummins Diesel, had 22 Class 8 Dump trucks with Cummins L10 engines. Lost only one in 12 years and that was because one of my mechanics changed the oil and forgot to put the new oil in. Still ran about 15 minutes with no oil before it blew. Had a 2012 Ram 3500 Dually with 6.7L Cummins Auto when we were still traveling.

[Rugged Brown]

I think it really comes down to colour. Go with what looks best in your eyes.

[Ford Idaho]

I ended up with a Ford but started after a Chevy because I wanted to try the Allison transmission for towing.

Dodge in HMO has let their name go to their head and are trying to payoff the loans they took out in record time.
I have no problem paying for what I want but Dodge is way overboard price wise.
One dealer told me if I did not buy it at their price someone would.

Goodbye Dodge!

I dislike chrome (maintenance) Chevy does not sell a package that does not have it.


Goodbye Chevy!


Ford had no problem with selling me a PU the way I wanted it (no chrome)

I paid about $20,000 less for the Ford than what Dodge was asking for theirs.

I bought a 2010 because it is the last year without DEF and I think it is the last year with cast iron heads.

[Oakman]

All you will get here are opinions. Ford guys love Fords, Chevy guys love Chevys, etc. Why not test drive all three, crunch the numbers, form your own opinion, and buy what the two of you can agree on.

[Patches]

All I can offer is this. A camper backed 28' RV over a parking block into some soft sand. When he tried to pull back over the parking block, he spun the rear tires and got his rig high centered on the concrete block. A neighboring camper brought his Dodge 2500 4WD over to pull him out. Couldn't budge the RV. I took my F-250 4WD and pulled the RV up and over the parking stop with little effort. So was my Ford stronger than the Dodge? Probably not. I just knew what I was doing. I remembered to lock in my front hub.... Actually I think the major 3 brands are all pretty good when set up correctly for the type of towing they will be doing. I own a Dodge and a Ford, and I know one is just as good as the other. Don't know much about the GM brand, other than I see fewer of them in campgrounds towing stuff when compared to the other two. I have heard that the GM product gets better gas mileage, but I don't know that for a fact.